Document 3:3 (2025–2026) / Published Use of technology to bring the specialist health services closer to patients
The demand for hospital services will continue to grow. The Storting expects more patients to receive such services in or near their homes with the aid of technology. Many hospitals have fallen short in adopting such technology.
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(PDF, 3.28 MB)
The pdf is in Norwegian
Brief background
- For several years, the Storting has expected that the adoption of new technology and various forms of digital home monitoring in the health services will help maintain high-quality services and slow the growth in the demand for primary and specialist healthcare personnel.
- Patients shall be able to engage with the specialist health services from home to a greater extent, through digital monitoring, online treatment programmes, and digital consultations.
Overall assessment
It is unsatisfactory that
- many hospitals have fallen short in adopting various forms of digital home monitoring of their patients
- hospitals have made inadequate use of the possibilities offered by technology to co-operate with municipalities on services closer to patients
- there is a lack of management information on whether the use of digital health services contributes to efficient use of resources
Conclusions
- It is possible to increase the use of various forms of digital home monitoring within the specialist health services and ensure greater co-operation with municipalities in this area.
- The health trusts and the Ministry of Health and Care Services can better facilitate efforts to bring the specialist health services closer to patients with the aid of technology.
- The health trusts and the Ministry of Health and Care Services have inadequately prioritised co-operation with the municipal health services in the management of efforts to bring the specialist health services closer to patients with the aid of technology.
- Management information on whether the use of digital health services contributes to efficient use of resources is inadequate at all levels.
Recommendations
We recommend that the Ministry of Health and Care Services
- ensure that knowledge about the effects of digital home monitoring and whether the goals of delivering specialist health services at home are being achieved, so that the health service can introduce services that have the desired impact on resource utilisation and treatment capacity
- follow up to ensure that central government policy instruments adequately support co-operation between the health trusts and municipalities to bring services closer to the patient. This also involves facilitating easier access to management data, providing an opportunity to see the overall effects when the health trusts and municipalities co-operate on services
- monitor whether the organisation of funding sufficiently stimulates the use of digital home monitoring
- assess whether there are fully digital services that can be centralised and provided nationwide
We also recommend that the Ministry ensure that the Regional Health Authorities
- implement measures to ensure that all hospitals utilise the opportunities to bring services closer to patients with the aid of technology, where this has the desired effect, and especially follow up on those that inadequately provide such services
- enable hospitals to co-operate with municipal health services to provide specialist health services close to the patient with the aid of technology